Detectives Make Arrest In Brutal Murder Of Woman 14 Years Ago

PORT RICHEY, FL — Fourteen years after a 79-year-old woman and her dog were brutally murdered in their Port Richey home, her family has gotten some degree of closure with the arrest of a 34-year-old man.

According to the Pasco County Sheriff's Office, on the evening of Sept. 10, 2005, Beverly Bobrick had dinner at Chili's with friends and went home. That was the last time she was seen alive.

Bobrick and her dog, Pepe, were discovered beaten to death in her home on Red Run Drive by a neighbor who noticed that Bobrick hadn't picked up her newspaper. The neighbor found the sliding glass door of the home open and the home ransacked.

On Friday, the sheriff's office announced that it knows the identity of Bobrick's killer. Detectives have arrested Brian Vincent Stoll, who is serving a 23 1/2-year prison sentence for burglaries committed in the neighborhoods around Bobrick's home along with armed burglary, aggravated burglary and grand theft.

“This is exciting news in the pursuit of justice in the homicide of Beverly Bobrick,” said Pasco Sheriff's Capt. Michael Jenkins during a press conference. “She was a 79-year old widow. She was the best neighbor you could possibly ever want to have. Her neighbors loved her dearly. And now, justice has been achieved in this homicide..."

Detectives say Stoll was only 19 years old and lived a couple of blocks away on Turnbridge Drive when he broke into Bobrick's home.

“It appeared his method of operandi was to target homes that were unoccupied but owned by elderly residents," said Jenkins. "He looked for cash, he looked for prescription pills and other items of value."

Detectives believe he broke into Bobrick's home a few weeks earlier and stole some prescription pills.

“On the early morning hours of Sept. 11, 2005, we believe he broke into the home again and, instead of the house being unoccupied, he made contact with the victim and he bludgeoned her to death, we believe likely, with his hands and feet,” Jenkins said. “What is particularly concerning is there was not only significant trauma to the body, head and face, but there was also significant defensive wounds that existed on the victim’s body as well. We want people to understand the dramatic and traumatic nature of this homicide. This was a terrible, terrible thing.”

After killing Bobrick and her dog and stealing valuables, detectives said Stoll left behind a hair that provided crucial DNA connecting Stoll to the crime.

In addition to the hair, Jenkins said Stoll confessed the crime to acquaintances and tried to destroy bloody clothing that the sheriff's office recovered.

The sheriff's office also recovered one other "piece of key evidence ... that we believe present an overwhelming case," said Jenkins.

“We are confident in our collaborative investigation that was tenacious and patient, waiting for just the right time to bring these charges,” Jenkins said. “We have built a solid case that Brian Vincent Stoll is, in fact, the individual responsible for Beverly Bobrick’s homicide.”

Stoll has been charged with first-degree premeditated murder. He's being held at the Land O' Lakes Detention Center.